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Bassolarr grunted in pain a little bit--whoever was their latest addition to their pathetic crew actually had a decent arm on him, though the dark lighting made it hard to see the jerk properly. He had knives too, a step up from the weak-sauce punches they had been giving him before now. So it took some new addition to come up with the bright idea to cut him up in a torture chamber? Man, these were some of the worst pirates the King of the Ring had ever seen. Still, it was gonna take a lot more than a few cuts and bruises to make him break--his spirit was too strong for that!

Still, the Extreme King could use a distraction while his wounds healed on their own--Koopa regeneration at its finest, heh--so he focused on his telepathic gem again, the one in his pocket, noting the energies in it were starting to get weaker... he wouldn't have a lot more distractions like this if things kept up, so he made sure to enjoy them while he could--no sense in wasting them either.

He was pretty unimaginative at times, and had wanted to revisit that arena he kept making, but this time? Nah--a slice of home would be great. The massive volcano at the top of the tallest mountain on his homeworld was always a welcome sight. Hot baths from the steam-vented lakes of water along the mountain's base were said to rejuvenate the body and bones, as well as heal and relax the muscles--the Koopa King just liked 'em for the nice hot baths, heh. He wasn't going to jump into one--not after tha last time he and Violet had met one another in a similar kind of scene. Sure, she had seen him--all of him--but it still didn't feel proper to just strip down and call her out here. The place was a good enough area for sparring or talking anyhow.

The hot baths were dwarfed by the massive mountain beside them, with the jungles of Koopa surrounding the area. In the distance, Bassolarr imagined the sounds that usually came from a jungle teeming with vibrant and dangerous life. Yeah--that was a proper slice of home for him. He missed it all the more, but just seeing it made him relax quite a bit, even if it was fake. One day, he'd see the real thing again, make no mistake!

"Planet Koopa, I assume?" Her voice was the only warning Bassolarr would have as Komand'r emerged from the normal realm into the Astral Realm. Skoll stood beside her - his massive and spiked form loomed over her as his azure pelt danced lively with static. The powerful lupine lifted his scarred muzzle to drink in the humid air, but the bestial deity said nothing in greeting.

"Can't say that I've ever been here, though," Blackfire commented idly. "But I recognize it from data crystals." The Vessel of Lightning glanced around with her violet eyes. She seemed almost chipper, which was odd. As she glanced back at the massive Dinosoid before her, a teasing look danced in those deep violet pools.

"Still," she teased lightly. "Its an upgrade from that dusty arena of yours." A chuckle escaped the Vessel of Lightning. "You may be more imaginative than I thought."

But her light visage swiftly morphed into a more serious one. "You're feeling a bit homesick, aren't you?"

The voice behind him was quite familiar at this point, giving him the ease to casually turn behind him with a wide smile on his face. "'Course it is--best home you'll ever see, bwahaha!" he boasted, spreading his arms in welcome. It wasn't exactly the place of his home, but when you've been away from your home world for so long, anything like it would feel welcoming! He nodded to her in greeting, though the talk of 'data crystals' was something that brought an arch to his brow. "Crystals, eh? You got some fancy things what'd let you see other worlds?" he asked before he looked up towards Sparky Pup.

"Ha! Wanted to see it, too, Sparky?" the King of the Ring asked with a welcoming tone to his voicr. He waved an arm at the landscape--mostly in an attempt to ignore Violet's ribbin' about his creativity. He was someone with basic likes, he had to admit, but she would have caught him grumbling under his voice all the same. "'Nothin' dusty 'bout it..." he complained under his breath before he looked back to his two visitors.

Of course, her question about him being homesick gave him pause, tilting his head a little as he had a sad, nostalgic look on his face. "Aye--home's still conquered by that Siberia woman, a Changelin' of the Planet Tradin' Organization, see? That'd be why I'm with 'em--gotta serve 'em what'd keep the planet safe, see? I gotta get stronger in order to take my home back--ain't nothin' gonna stop me from trainin' n' beatin' her face right proper," he said, a serious growl escaping his jaws for a moment before he shook his head.

"Only proper to remind myself who 'n what I'm fightin' for, see? Got this place, got you n' got the tyke. Right n' proper, eh?" he said before he seemed to calm down. It was nice to remind himself what his goals were, after all. "Lotta distractions in the galaxy, see?"

"Something like that," Komand'r responded with a light chuckle at Bassolarr's query on Data Crystals. The Vessel of Lightning wasn't all that surprised that the Dinosoid had never heard of it before - it was a psionic invention by the Rasagins, forged from large crystal structures nearest to the planet's core. Heated and imbued with the very heart of their homeworld, the crystals were charged with a psychic power that most sciences could not explain. She decided to say nothing in regards to Skoll's new nickname - the Vessel simply glanced over at the massive wolf. Though an annoyed look flickered in the beast's cobalt eyes, the god of lightning kept his maw shut, causing Blackfire to raise a single eyebrow in mild surprise. At this point, Je'sheln had teased her mate with the nickname so much, Skoll seemed to desensitize himself to it.

But the Rasagin turned her violet gaze back to the massive reptilian humanoid as he once more explained his situation. "Yeah, you told me about Siberia," she affirmed, briefly recollecting the first time she had met Bassolarr. Though her face was carefully neutral - the woman hadn't betrayed the odd way they had met with so much as a bat of her eyelashes - a perfect poker face. "Her reign won't last much-" Blackfire cut herself off as a blast of heated and humid wind swept against her side. Narrowing her brilliant eyes against the gale, the woman turned her face away as her long ebony hair caught the gust and swept to the side for a moment. As the wind passed, Blackfire let out a soft sigh as she reached up to readjust her locks.

With the same arm, the Vessel of Lightning reached into her pocket to produce a sizable purple crystal in the shape of a cylinder. Gold strands of metal wreathed around the polished and glassy surface like a cobweb. Of course, this was not the real thing - only a projection of the real thing that was still in her pocket back in the waking realm.

"Data Crystals," Blackfire introduced the Dinosoid to the mystical item. "Although most Rasagins prefer to call them Soul Crystals." The woman allowed her psychic ability to flourish slightly - a light violet aura could be briefly seen around the Vessel's lithe form like a mist. In response to the energy, the crystal began to glow softly. "They can record events or data through telepathic and psychic links and project them at a later date. The best part about it is that they can only be used by a Rasagin or another person that a Rasagin will mentally allow - a guest of sorts." She placed the crystal back into her pocket. "Maragai keeps thousands of these," she explained with a soft chuckle. "She uses them to record major events or moments in her life. I think it's a diary of sorts for her."

She glanced around the planet once more for a moment. "But enough about that," she said softly. "I found you."

The gust of wind didn't take the King of the Ring by surprise--spurts of heated, moist air in this region of Koopa were frequent and regular, the kind of fiery, pounding heart of the planet that seemed to give birth to a race of just as heated individuals--the Koopa--and a whole host of deadly and monstrous creatures to test them besides. The Extreme King smirked a little as he looked down at Violet, noting her slight discomfort at the moment before the conversation moved on from the Changling bitch holding his world. It was a welcome change--just thinking about that woman made him angry, especially since he had lost so thoroughly against her in combat. But this far away, there was no way someone could stop him from training his body until he was ready for that decisive rematch.

Violet pulled out a large crystal from her pocket, a strange little thing of violet hue with metal stinging around it like webbing. When her aura flared up a little, it seemed to glow for a moment, on cue with the rest of Violet's explanation--so these things could hold details, memories, visions... all sorts of stuff, kinda like computers. It was all a little complicated for the Dino King's head, but he didn't think too much on it--it just was, after all, a nifty little thing to preserve knowledge, right? No sense in fussin' over it at all.

He wanted to open his mouth about Mar'gai specifically--especially since she came up in conversation. How likely was she to have one of those gadgets with her as she prepared for her own conflict against a monster? Looking back, he probably should have helped mentally prepare the girl for the task ahead... but she was protected by Snowy Pup, nothing too bad could happen, right? He wanted to pursue that subject, even though Violet didn't seem to like talking about it, but then the subject of his own location came up, causing his eyebrows to rise up a little.

"Heh--that fast, eh? Jus' thinkin' o' redecoratin'," he commented casually and confidently--all this time, he had been completely assured of his own escape, but he wasn't going to refuse someone's help at this point. Maybe whatever this device was made out of was just smarter than he was--but then again, he had yet to meet someone or something that could outsmart raw muscle. Whatever she was planning, it was probably gonna be pretty flashy...

"Why you sayin' that so softly, eh? Don't make me teach you th' same lesson I taught Mar'gai, eh? Lookin' me in the eye when you got the bad news, see?" he said, his expression far more joking and playful than his words would otherwise give--he didn't need to teach Violet anything, after all, she was an accomplished warrior in her own right. They were nothing short of equals here, but he couldn't resist the chance to rib on her just a little.

A soft smirk crossed Blackfire's features. She was mildly surprised that Bassolarr had picked up on the hesitation in her voice. Still, the woman wasn't exactly trying to hide anything from the Dinosoid.

Her gaze was steely as the Vessel of Lightning crossed her arms. "I've been tracking these pirates for a while," the Rasagin woman started with a sigh. There was a lot to cover, after all. "Every time I came close to hacking into their systems, I would run into another encryption or scrambled data. In other words, they were well aware that somebody was trying to track them down." Komand'r lowered her arms as she stepped forward towards the massive Dinosoid. She didn't like admitting it, but the pirates had quite a bit of good technology.

"Not only that, but they had managed to backtrack my attempts and figure out who I am." The woman's eyes narrowed. "What I am." Standing this close to Bassolarr, the Rasagin found that she had to lift her chin to meet his gaze.

"These aren't just pirates," the Vessel continued, closing her violet eyes for a moment. "At least, not in the traditional sense. They aren't acting out of their own interests, as far as I can tell. Someone, or something is pulling their strings." Blackfire opened her eyes once more as she reached into her pocket again. Rather than taking the crystal out, the Rasagin produced an ebony envelope, decorated with a white skull.

"A well-funded person or organization at that," she said, handing the envelope to Bassolarr. "Enough to put out a one hundred thousand Zeni bounty on my head."

There it was--that steely gaze. She was someone that was hardened by a life of combat and experience, and he found himself respecting and admiring that about her. Heh--she was growing in attractiveness all the time, but he wasn't... he shook his head a little to dismiss the thought and focus on what she was saying. She was being serious, so it wasn't the time to be flirting!

"Hrmph--so they know they're bein' hunted, eh? Can't say I'm surprised--the lot o' 'em smell like cowards," he commented irritably at the state of things. For them to evade pursuit with him in tow... but that also started raising other questions. As far as he knew, there weren't any bounties on his head, nor was there any ransoms demanded or offered. He tilted his head to the side, slowly catching up to Violet's mindset--what was with all the trouble of keeping him locked up then...?

Once again, she stepped up a bit closer, his gaze never leaving hers as she explained the situation, but when she mentioned that the pirates had figured put who and what she was, his brows seemed to knit together. "Don't be lookin' at me--ain't told 'em nothin'," he protested, but he must have misread what she was saying--she wasn't accusing him if anything, but implying that these whelps were smarter than they looked.

She continued to explain, that they were working for someone powerful--either in strength, wealth, or both. The King of the Ring shook his head a little in irritation; Violet's explanation made it make more sense, at least the machine he was stuck in at the moment. So with that much funding and thought behind their actions... then what was the 'why'?

That was when Violet offered the small envelop to Bassolarr, his eyes lighting up in curiosity--he had never seen it before--and tuened it around in his hands for a moment. "Tha' much--!?" the Koopa King blinked in surprise, looking towards Violet with concern. That was a huge chunk of change... suddenly, it all started to click.

"Gotta be that bastard--Frostbite! Wolfy bloke, ex-Star Wolf. Only he's got th' resources for somethin' like this n' the grudge what make it all happen, see?" he explained, nearly crushing the envelope in his clenched hands. "Didn't 'ave the guts 'r strength to take me down last time, so he goin' all spineless on me? I'll make him pay!"

"Frostbite..." Blackfire mulled over the name for a moment. So her suspicions had been correct after all! The Rasagin reached forward to take the ebony envelope back from the Dinosoid. "He may be an ex-member of the Star Wolves," Komand'r admitted. "But he still has a sizable claim from within. Maragai should be on that planet by now to confirm that much, at least."

A soft sigh escaped the Rasagin as she carefully tucked the bounty back into her pocket. For such a large price placed on her, the Vessel hardly seemed worried. After all, this wasn't the first bounty she had faced.

"Large quantities of weapons, ships, armors, and other technology has been shipped off-world to an undisclosed area of space near Frieza-Sei. There's a rather large asteroid field there and the constant ion storms make it impossible for me to scan."

Once more, the Vessel crossed her arms. "And there's a large fleet in route to that same location. Unlike any other time that I would try to track their movements, they willingly let themselves be known." The Vessel paused for a moment, narrowing her violet eyes. "On top of all that, a large amount of scavenged technology from a group several years ago known as the Execution Force has mysteriously gone up missing. Ki absorbers, Power Limiters, the whole nine yards."

Blackfire raised an eyebrow. "Its a challenge," she surmised. "They want me to come to them."

The Dinosoid grit his teeth as she explained the situation further, elaborating on all tge details concerning her chase. He didn't understand all pf it really--mostly the techno mumbo jumbo--but the situation was about as clear as one might expect for him: he was being held as a captive of vengeance and being used as bait for a trap for Violet. He shook his head--"Ya knowin' it's a trap--all o' that tech makes it sound like suicide if'n you come fer me," he protested, a serious tone in his voice, but he grimaced down at her all the same.

That look... there was no way he was going to dissuade her, huh? It was a lot like Mar'gai's determined look too, and Bassolarr knew that the tyke was stubborn once she set her mind on something. Probably got that from her momma and pappa, eh? He sighed out his nostrils at the woman before him as he put his clawed hands on his own hips.

"Ya got at least one advantage over me--Sparky Pup's probably got yer back, aye? Between the two o' ya, I'm startin' ta feel sorry for the pirates--or, well, I would be if'n they hadn't put me in a box. You betta be careful n' win, y'hear? Otherwise I gotta figure out how ta bust us both outta prison, eh?" he said, finishing his last sentence with a smirk.

He nodded to Violet once more, his eyes finally looking her up and down for a moment before he tilted to the side. "Y'got spunk, Violet--enough to impress me!"

An annoyed look crossed the woman's face as Bassolarr seemed to try and talk her out of it for a moment. Thankfully, the Dinosoid seemed to know better than pursue that option. That was good. Because Blackfire was hardly concerned about any preparations that the pirates could take. Perhaps she was overconfident - after all, there was very little in the known universe outside of gods who could even come close to her full power. And even if they did have a way to limit the strength she could bring out, it wasn't anything that the Vessel of Lightning hadn't seen before. The Execution Force had used such devices in a vain attempt to destroy the Vessel back when she was a teenager. But they weren't able to fight against a Vessel. Not even close.

"Well, I'm not doing this for recognition," Komand'r said, shaking her head softly. "And Skoll won't be accompanying me on this, either." A soft smile crossed her lips. "Unless I really need him, it's likely going to be difficult for a large lupine as himself to navigate the smaller halls of battleships." The Rasagin woman trailed off for a moment as she gazed up at the sun above her. "Maragai will be coming with me," the Vessel of Lightning finally said after a long pause. "I know Je'sheln has been putting her through absolute hell in training as of late. She's growing strong. It's only a matter of time before she becomes even stronger than me. Between her defensive capabilities and my offensive presence, I doubt these pirates can really do much."

She looked down once more. "But there is one thing that bothers me about this whole scenario." She raised a hand in an almost defensive manner. "And I'm not accusing you of anything, Bassolarr. But although the Star Wolves aren't directly behind this, as far as I can tell, they definitely have a sizable chunk into whatever operation is being run by this Frostbite fellow. They work fairly closely with the PTO. So I can't help but wonder..."

The woman's gaze hardened. "Why would they be taking you so close to Frieza-Sei? That's the heart of the hive for the Planetary Trade Organization. Even the Saiyan Empire knows better than to fuck with the heart of that kind of territory. You say you're forced to work for them, yet you're being targeted by them. And it makes no sense to me. They certainly aren't after me, despite their best efforts to provoke me into attacking. You were captured before we ever met."

"So what would they really be after?" She let the question hang in the air for a moment before shaking her head. "I don't expect you to know, of course," she assured the Dinosoid. "But I can't help but feel that both of us are missing a huge chunk of this picture. Something I should have seen by now..."

"Tch--she mentioned goin' with ya," he replied to Violet's comment concerning Mar'gai. It was weird... Bassolarr had barely acknowledged it when the little tyke had said something, figuring she would just be around for support, but the way Violet made it out... it hadn't really hit him until now, but she was right about the little one...

Mar'gai was definitely getting stronger, and it was really starting to show. If she hadn't been preparing for her fight against... whats-his-face... then the King would have tried to gauge her strength in a spar. But now... well, to have two people coming to spring him loose? It almost seemed like overkill, but if it was what Mar'gai really wanted...

The conversation shifted again to the pirates and their motives. It was hard to tell what they were really after, but all he could do was spill what he already knew. "See--Frostbite's been a lackey o' Siberia's for awhile. He was there when the lot o' them invaded Koopa--beat up the lot o' 'em, too, heh" he said, smirking to himself at the thought. They hadn't been that much of a challenge, truth be told--except for Siberia herself.

"s'far as I know it, bloke's been doin' most of that bitch's dirty n' illegal work for awhile now. Ain't sure if this has gotten anything to do with 'er though. That many pirate ships... lookin' like somethin' big's goin' down. Ain't sure what it's gotta do with me neither..." he said, rubbing the back of his neck for a moment as his head started to hurt. Too much thinkin', not enough doin'.

"PTO is fragglin' big, but anythin' they cannae get away with, they hire pirates ta do. But... tha' close to Frieza, ain't sure what it could be."

He didn't know any more than she did. Of course, Blackfire didn't expect him to - Bassolarr was trapped in a box with little to no knowledge of the outside world. Still, the Rasagin couldn't help but feel a bit irritated. Not at the Dinosoid, but the situation as a whole. She hated going head first into something while blind! That was just asking for trouble! But at this point, the Vessel of Lightning saw little choice. After all, if she were to let this one chance slip by, it would become next to impossible to track these pirates down again!

Noting Bassolarr's uncomfortable look, the Rasagin wan shook her head. "I suppose I'll just have to figure out the whole story later," she mused, dismissing her questions.

"Just try not to give them too much trouble if you can. Don't make it obvious or anything, of course. But I can't be sure what they are using to lock your power down, but even if I manage to free you, I'm going to need you to be able to move, at least. The adverse effects of power locking may last a while if they are using nanobot technology as the Execution Force did. If they are using some sort of device, its likely to have some sort of failsafe that won't allow me to disable it right away."

Of course, this was all theoretical to Komand'r. Like most of the missing details, such things simply had to be assumed as fact for preparation purposes. Which actually gave the woman another idea.

"And while I'm at it..." Blackfire's feet left the ground as she ascended a foot into the air - enough where she was eye level with Bassolarr. She extended an open palm towards the crown of the Dinosoid's head. "It'll be best if I can place some of my psychic energies inside of your mind," she explained. "I doubt that I'll have much of a way to track you while on their ship otherwise," she said softly.